Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Field of the Invention
Personal care articles such as infant diapers, training pants, adult incontinence products, and the like are well known. Such articles have achieved a wide acceptance due to their ability to receive and absorb body exudates.
This invention pertains to non-stretch grasping panels for use with fastener systems for such articles. The grasping panels comprise non-stretch members that assist in proper positioning of fastening tabs with respect to the front edge of such a personal care article. The grasping panels allow a user to stretch the outer cover or substrate of the absorbent article while properly and evenly positioning the grasping panel relative to a respective fastener when mounting the article to the body of a wearer. In some embodiments, the grasping panels are secured to an outer cover. In other embodiments, the grasping panels are secured to a substrate comprising an outer cover and a bodyside liner.
In yet another embodiment, the outer surface of the outer cover comprises a stretch landing zone overlying at least a portion of an absorbent core so that the fastening tabs, when fastened to the outer cover, overlie at least a portion of the absorbent core.
In general, personal care articles should comfortably fit the body of a wearer. Personal care articles generally have fastening tabs at the rear of the personal care article that extend outwardly and secure to a front portion of the article. For the personal care article to be effective, the front panels of the article need to be properly placed and maintain their position relative to the fastening tabs, the front waistband, and the rear waistband of the article.
Personal care articles need to be properly fitted to the body of a wearer. In the past there has been little thought or concern as to the positioning of the grasping panels with respect to the body of the wearer and the waistband sections of the personal care article. For standard personal care articles having no stretch in the waistband, except for that caused by waist elastics, known grasping panels tend to maintain their position.
However, when the personal care article has a stretchable outer cover, at least in the front portion thereof, and the grasping panels are integral therewith, or are made of a stretchable material, the grasping panels do not function properly because stretch tends to accumulate at points grasped by the user of the panel, thereby distorting the shape of the grasping panel in the process of securing the personal care article on the wearer.
The invention described herein solves the above problem by providing a substantially non-stretch grasping panel in combination with a stretchable outer cover, thereby permitting more uniform stretch across the entirety of at least the front waistband section of the personal care article. In this manner, the personal care article provides a better fit for the wearer. For example, using the invention, grasping panels of the personal care article are unlikely to roll up, and thus maintain a somewhat planar configuration, when the panels are placed adjacent the body of the user and extended.
The invention also includes locating the landing zone of the personal care article at a location overlying at least part of the absorbent core. As a result, when in use, at least part of the fastening tabs secured to the landing zone overly the absorbent material. When properly positioned, the landing zone can secure the fastening tabs at an ideal location spaced from the front edge of the article and overlying the absorbent material.
The present invention relates to a personal care article having a lateral cross-direction and a lengthwise longitudinal direction, a front portion, a rear portion, and a crotch portion interconnecting the front and rear portions. The personal care article comprises a resiliently stretchable outer cover having a first waistband section in the front portion and a second waistband section in the rear portion, the first waistband section being resiliently stretchable along at least the cross-direction and having first and second laterally opposed end regions, the second waistband section having third and fourth laterally opposed end regions, fastener apparatus, for holding the personal care article on a wearer, being disposed at at least one of the front and rear portions on at least one of the first, second, third, and fourth end regions, and a substantially nonelastomeric grasping panel disposed at the other of the front and rear portions on at least one of the respective end regions.
In some embodiments, the fastener apparatus comprises a fastener tab substrate having a first surface and an opposing second surface, at least one fastener component secured to at least a portion of the first surface of the fastener tab substrate, the second surface of the fastener tab substrate being secured to at least a portion of the outer cover at the respective end region, the fastener component being operable to make a fastening attachment to a resiliently stretchable landing zone of the personal care article. The fastener component in its entirety can overlie at least a portion of the first surface of the fastener tab substrate. The fastener component can comprise hook material.
In other embodiments, the fastener component extends outwardly from the fastener tab substrate.
In some embodiments, the fastener component is arranged and configured to make a fastening attachment to a resiliently stretchable landing zone of the personal care article. The landing zone can comprise a nonwoven fabric portion of the outer cover, engageable with the fastener component to provide an operable fastening attachment of the fastener component to the landing zone.
In some embodiments, the personal care article includes an absorbent structure superposed on and operably connected to the outer cover to form an absorbent article. The absorbent structure can include a liquid impermeable backsheet, a liquid permeable bodyside liner superposed on the backsheet, and an absorbent core disposed between the bodyside liner and the backsheet. The personal care article can further comprise extendible attachment elements that secure the absorbent structure to the outer cover while accommodating resilient stretching of the outer cover along the cross-direction.
In some embodiments, the extendible attachment elements accommodate resilient stretching of the first waistband section to at least about 5% elongation, as determined with respect to an unstretched condition of the first waistband section. The extendible attachment elements each have at least one pleat folded therein that connects the absorbent structure and the outer cover.
In some embodiments, the fastener apparatus comprises fastener components secured to a surface of the outer cover at respective end regions and operable to make fastening attachments to a resiliently stretchable landing zone of the personal care article, the landing zone generally overlying the absorbent structure. The fastener components can extend outwardly from the outer cover at the respective end regions.
In preferred embodiments, the grasping panel has a Gurley stiffness value of at least about 10 milligrams. In some embodiments, the grasping panel has a Gurley stiffness value of up to about 10,000 milligrams. In other embodiments, the grasping panel can have a Gurley stiffness value of up to about 2,000 milligrams.
In some embodiments, the second waistband section is resiliently stretchable along the cross-direction.
In some embodiments, the personal care article includes an extensible bodyside liner superposed in surface-to-surface relationship on the outer cover.
In preferred embodiments, the grasping panel has a width of at least about 2 centimeters and a length of at least about 3 centimeters.
In other embodiments of the invention, the personal care article includes an outer cover, at least about 30% of the area of the outer cover being resiliently stretchable, the outer cover having a first waistband section in the front portion and a second waistband section in the rear portion, at least one of the first waistband section and the second waistband section being resiliently stretchable along at least the cross-direction, fastener apparatus for holding the personal care article on a wearer, the fastener apparatus being disposed at at least one of the front and rear portions on at least one of the first, second, third, and fourth end regions, and a substantially nonelastomeric grasping panel disposed in the other of the front and rear portions on at least one of the respective end regions, the grasping panel assisting a user in stretching the outer cover while properly and evenly positioning the grasping panel relative to the fastener apparatus when mounting the personal care article to the body of a wearer.
In other embodiments of the invention, the personal care article comprises an outer cover, at least about 30% of the area of the outer cover being resiliently stretchable, the outer cover having a first waistband section in the front portion and a second waistband section in the rear portion, at least one of the first waistband section and the second waistband section being resiliently stretchable along at least the cross-direction, the first waistband section having first and second laterally opposed end regions and the second waistband section having third and fourth laterally opposed end regions, an absorbent structure superposed on and operably connected to the outer cover and including an absorbent core for receiving and storing exudates, fastener apparatus disposed at at least one of the first and second end regions, or at at least one of the third and fourth end regions for holding the article on a wearer, and a resiliently stretchable landing zone overlying at least a portion of the absorbent core for engagement to the fastener apparatus.
In some embodiments, the grasping panel is secured to at least one of the first, second, third, or fourth end regions by ultrasonic bonding.
In other embodiments of the invention, the personal care article comprises a resiliently stretchable outer cover, the outer cover having a first waistband section in the front portion and a second waistband section in the rear portion, the first waistband section being resiliently stretchable along at least the cross-direction and having first and second laterally opposed end regions, the second waistband section having third and fourth laterally opposed end regions, and a substantially nonelastomeric fastener apparatus being secured to at least one of the first, second, third, and fourth end regions for holding the personal care article on a wearer.
In preferred embodiments, the fastener apparatus has a Gurley stiffness value of at least about 10 milligrams. In most embodiments the fastener apparatus has a Gurley stiffness value of less than about 10,000 milligrams. In some embodiments, the fastener apparatus can have a Gurley,stiffness value of less than about 2,000 milligrams.